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Motorola found in breach of EU competition law, but escapes fine

The European Commission has found Motorola Mobility guilty of breaching EU competition law over its use of standards-essential patents (SEPs), according to reports. PC World and Reuters are reporting that the Google-owned smartphone maker was found to have broken the law by bringing injunctions against Apple in Germany over SEPs it had agreed to license.

The EU's Competition Commissioner could have issued a fine of up to 10 percent of Motorola's annual global turnover, however the company escaped without a fine due to EU court case law being unclear on the matter. Nevertheless, Motorola was found to have abused a dominant position and was ordered to drop its injunctions against Apple.

"The so-called smartphone patent wars should not occur at the expense of consumers," said commissioner Joaquin Almunia. "While patent holders should be fairly remunerated for the use of their intellectual property, implementers of such standards should also get access to standardized technology on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms."

Similarly, the commission also ruled to accept a pledge by Samsung not to pursue injunctions against rivals who had agreed to license SEPs. Meanwhile in the U.S., the battle between Apple and Motorola rages on.